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Housing subsidy blasted

Critics say a York Region policy of using tax dollars to subsidize housing restricted to members of certain ethnic and religious groups is discriminatory and condones a form of segregation.

By Gail SwainsonUrban Affairs Reporter

Fri., Feb. 19, 2010

Critics say a York Region policy of using tax dollars to subsidize housing restricted to members of certain ethnic and religious groups is discriminatory and condones a form of segregation.

The policy, endorsed recently by regional council, allows four buildings that limit residence to members of their own faith and ethnic communities – one Italian, one Jewish and two Muslim – to receive regional rent-geared-to-income housing subsidies.

"These kinds of special exemptions can get tricky and set a dangerous precedent," said Newmarket Regional Councillor John Taylor. "These segregated services are not conducive to the kind of communities we want to build. This is also a significant public policy direction that should be debated, but has gone ahead almost unnoticed."

Only Toronto, with four such facilities, and now York Region, have chosen to award exemptions. These are allowed by the Human Rights Commission if the housing providers follow strict criteria requiring them, among other things, to conduct culturally specific programs within the facility or community.

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Critics say York's policy discriminates based on an applicant's race and religion and that it causes longer waits for those who have spent years working their way to the top of the subsidized housing list but do not fit the criteria of the residence.

Some 6,700 seniors and families are waiting for subsidized housing in York, a two- to 10-year wait, depending on location.

Supporters say the program simply gives minority groups a leg up and recognizes the hours of fundraising and volunteer work their communities have put into building culturally specific housing.

Regional Councillor Joyce Frustaglio is among those who have helped raise funds to build homes geared to seniors of Italian descent. "These homes were built by the Italian community for the Italian community," she said.

The four residences in York Region have applied for subsidies under old provincial provisions allowing the exemption for facilities built before 2000. They include:

Friulli Benevolent Corp. in Vaughan, which has 113 apartments for Italian seniors. Of these, 78 are rent-geared-to-income units and are therefore entitled, under the specific mandate policy, to offer subsidies to Italian renters.

Jubilee Garden in Richmond Hill, which has 100 family units for the Ismaili Muslim community; 74 are rent-geared-to-income.

Ja'Fari Islamic Housing in Richmond Hill, a 170-unit complex with 136 units set aside for subsidies.

Under the municipal subsidy program, those who qualify pay rent tailored to their income, with the municipality making up the rest of the market rent cost.

"We have a massive waiting list and yet taxpayers' money is going into a facility that caters to people of a certain ethnicity or faith," Taylor said. "It's everyone's tax dollars going into a facility that isn't open to everyone."

Frustaglio said many seniors applying to live at Friulli, for example, are simply more comfortable living in a centre where they understand the language and are surrounded by familiar traditions.

"The Greater Toronto Area would not have the number of these facilities if it wasn't for the tremendous involvement of faith-based ethnic groups," she said. "People feel more comfortable among their own."

Where facilities have been built by an ethnic association, "they have the right to be selective," she added.

A regional staff report acknowledges that, while allowing mandates will help such facilities "respect their historic relationships with their founding communities," it may increase complaints and the policy could be challenged in court.

Peel Region's commissioner of human services, Janet Menard, said the region hasn't had requests for such "exclusivity," given that people seeking housing tend to be self-selective anyway.

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